ICYMI

Y&R's Joshua Morrow & Amelia Heinle Interview

Joshua Morrow: It was like meeting a unicorn [both laugh]. Uh, I don’t —

Heinle: You don’t remember? I know exactly where we were. We were on set and I was standing by a boom and Josh came striding across the studio floor like a knight on a horse toward me with his shimmering cape and his glistening hair, and he’s like, “Hey, I’m Josh, and I’m going to be playing your brother,” and I thought, “Oh! Oh, okay, he’s really handsome.” And somehow we talked about our ages and our names and we got a lot of information.

Morrow: So I think what we can take from this is your initial reaction was that you were very sad when you found out I was going to playing your brother and not your love interest.

Heinle: How did you know?

Morrow: I do remember our very first scenes together, though. We were sitting somewhere and we did our scenes and then Kathy [Foster], the director, walks out and says, “Okay, listen you two. The sexual chemistry is amazing, but you’re brother and sister, so let’s do this again.”

Heinle: And then I went back and I watched it and I was looking at Josh just like I was going to eat him up with a spoon.

Morrow: And thus began the 15-year journey of Nick always flirting with his sister.

Digest: Josh, you had all those years with Heather Tom (ex-Victoria; Katie, B&B). What was the transition like from Heather to Amelia?

Morrow: Heather and I were obviously very, very close and I loved working with her. I thought she was just an incredibly talented person and I was sad when she left. I’m not disrespecting Amelia in any way, but I was sad because I thought she was very good at her job and I liked her very much. But then Amelia came in and she has turned into my favorite human on the set. I just love her and I love her kids, and her husband is a very good friend of mine. I’m closer to Amelia than anyone on the show. I think it’s our greatest recast ever.

Heinle:Can we keep this on the surface because I might cry. I’m really emotional today. I’m so touched right now; that’s so nice of you!

Digest: What can you say about Josh?

Heinle: He flies below the radar. He could be a ginormous attention hog or time-sucker, but he just comes in and he says his lines, he does what he knows and he never causes any trouble. He’s just a really reliable, wonderful person whomakes everybody laugh. He always has a fresh joke that’s always funny.

Digest: What is it about Nick and Victoria’s relationship that has made their dynamic so popular with fans?

Morrow: They’re each other’s best friend. The Newman family, more than others, has gone through the most ridiculous and crazy and dramatic things, but you can always rely on Nick and Victoria to have each other’s back. I think that’s very special and a story they don’t tell enough, even on other shows. They’re each other’s person.

Heinle:Yeah, it’s true. I’m excited and hopeful they’ll get back to that whole family dynamic a little more now that we have Sally Sussman [head writer] in, because I think she knows the history of the show. I remember when I first came on, it seemed to be more along that vein of family, and I hope it goes back to that because I think people really loved it. Nick and Victoria’s relationship has always been my favorite, too, just because it’s consistent. It’s not a lover, it’s a family.

Digest: What are some of the most memorable scenes that you guys have shared?

Morrow: Oh, my God, the best scenes we ever shared are the reliquary.

Heinle: We keep bringing that up.

Morrow: I’ll never let it go. It was the greatest story arc we ever told. I just loved the ups and downs of it. Literally, we’re crying tears down our faces, and they’re like, “All right, 3, 2 …” and I guarantee you, half those scenes our eyes are pink and watery. It was just ridiculous.

Heinle:How about the time when we had to say something ridiculous, and it was just really hard to say, and we just kept messing up over and over and over? Pretty soon, it was really to the point where we were going to get fired. I would mess up and then he would mess up and then I would mess up and then he would mess up and we were just looking at each other like, “Oh, s–t.”

Morrow: I like when I walked down the aisle when you got married to Billy. It was beautifully shot and you were marrying Billy and we loved Billy [Miller, ex-Billy; Jason, GH] so much and it was fun and lighthearted.

Morrow: I don’t know why I don’t have that picture in my dressing room.

Heinle: I should have it. It should be framed. I don’t even have it, and I’ve seen it a hundred times.

Digest: Amelia, when you came on the show, Josh already had a pretty established relationship with Eric [Braeden, Victor] and Melody [Thomas Scott, Nikki]. How did they make you feel like
a part of the Newmans?

Heinle: Everyone made me feel so incredibly welcome, and I knew that it was sincere. I’ve never stayed on a soap so long; usually, I moved around. After being there a few years, I was like, “I’ve got to work here forever.” These people are so great and Mel and Eric and Josh immediately made me feel so welcome. And I was kind of nervous about that because Heather had been there and they loved her and that she was a very integral part of the show. I know how that feels when someone new comes in. It’s like, “Ugh, this is going to be painful,” but I was pleasantly surprised and it continues to this day. I feel so close to all these people. They’re my extended family.

Morrow: There’s only four of us. We’re the only full-bred Newmans and she came in and it was like, “All right, listen: You joined a pretty exclusive group here, kid.” And she knocked it out of the park.

Heinle:I’m humbled because they are all such cool people in their own unique way. They each have their own quirks and personalities, but for some reason, we all just get along so well. It’s rare, and I don’t take it for granted.

JPI

Digest: Melody threw you a baby shower, right? For Rowe?

Heinle: She did, yeah.

Morrow: She threw me one, too.

Heinle: She did?

Morrow: Yeah, she threw the first one for [wife] Tobe for [son] Cooper.

Heinle: Aww.

Digest: Aww.

Heinle: She’s such an angel.

Morrow: She really is, man.

Digest: What is it like when it’s the four of
you in a scene? Do you have fun together?

Heinle: Yes.

Morrow: It’s so fun. It’s awesome. It’s something very special to me when it’s just the four of us, and it feels like a family to me.

Digest: What can each of you tell me about the other that the fans wouldn’t really know about?

Heinle: I’m pretty sure everybody knows how fabulous Josh is, but what they don’t know, probably, is that he doesn’t like chocolate and he doesn’t like coffee. He hates them! I’m like, “Are you sure?”

Morrow: I would say the thing that people probably don’t know about her is that when she comes into work in the morning, she truly looks like she slept in an alley the night before. Her clothes are mismatched, her hair looks like she put a fork in a light socket. When she leaves the house, you know how you have that mirror where keys are and you take a quick glance and you’re like, “All right, the world’s ready for this”? She doesn’t have that mirror. Some days she leaves the house and I look at her like, “I think you’re such a beautiful woman, but what’s happening right now?”

Heinle: Look, I just feel comfortable here.

Morrow: That’s what I love about you! So me saying that isn’t an insult. She’s so comfortable in her own skin, she’s just like, “Yeah! This off-color halter top and these chaps and Crocs, they all go together! And I’m ready to go and start my day!”